New Mercado Plan Provokes Rage Article originally posted on HERE on January 23, 2024 After a year filled with battles between residents and developers, it hardly seems likely 2024 can be more dramatic. Then again … The first developer-hosted “neighborhood open house” of the year was as close to a mob as a room full of silver-haired folks sitting with legs crossed can be. While several spoke in support of Caliber’s plan to bring apartments to a business area near Shea Boulevard and 92nd Street, many waited patiently – and some not so much – to blast the twice-rejected project. From the developer’s office less than 1 mile from the proposed Mercado Village, Caliber CEO Chris Loeffler calmly explained the latest plan. The new proposal, he insisted, “makes positive changes from prior submittals, driven by significant engagement.” At the end of 2022, Caliber presented Mercado Village to Scottsdale City Council, seeking permission to “flip” vacant office spaces into a 273-unit apartment complex. After 18 Scottsdale residents spoke in favor of the project, two dozen asked for its rejection – Council sided with opponents in a 5-2 vote, with members Tom Durham and Linda Milhaven, voting for the project. While Milhaven is no longer on the council, Durham and the other current members – Barry Graham, Kathy Littlefield, Betty Janik, Solange Whitehead and Tammy Caputi – were at the Jan. 8 Caliber meeting. After Loeffler gave a presentation and opened the meeting up for questions, a woman stood up and asked all the council members how they were going to vote on Mercado Village. As Loeffler was answering, Whitehead asked for permission to speak. “I just want to point out that City Council has strict open meeting laws,” Whitehead said. “So nobody here (from) City Council can discuss this project.” Durham briefly spoke twice, the first time asking if apartments for health care professionals would still have a discount. When Durham addressed someone complaining about apartments under construction by saying a few identified are in Phoenix, Bob Pejman shouted out “you’re violating open meeting laws – there’s a quorum.” The Progress asked Kelly Corsette, a city spokesman, about advice from the city attorney’s office regarding council members speaking at neighborhood meetings. No response was received as of this edition’s deadline. According to a city posting notice on the event, “While a quorum of the City Council may be in attendance at this event, the members of the City Council will not engage in any deliberations, decisions, or other legal action of the public body.” The Progress asked Durham about the allegation of a potential open meeting laws violation. “My comments did not relate to an issue before the Council, but instead related to buildings on the Phoenix side of Scottsdale Road,” Durham responded, via email. “In addition, there were only three members of the council present when I made my comments—myself, and Council members Littlefield and Whitehead. Council members Janik, Graham and Caputi had previously left.” Whitehead said she asked Tim Curtis, the city’s director of Current Planning, about advance notice of the Mercado Village meeting. “The development team did not notify the Planning Department 10 days prior to the open house meeting, contrary to the city’s published recommended best practices,” Curtis replied, via email. But, Curtis noted, “the city’s best practices exceed the state’s requirements, which are silent on early notification of zoning cases prior to a formal application submittal.” And, Curtis added, Caliber satisfied the city and state requirement of posting a sign about the meeting on the planned Mercado Village property at least 10 days in advance of the neighborhood meeting. Caliber swings again After two other ideas struck out, Caliber is ready to step up to the plate again. Two months ago, Loeffler told the Progress he is optimistic that the latest Mercado Village plan will fly in the coming months. The next steps will be an application review, plus Planning Commission and Design Review Board meetings before an ultimate presentation to City Council. Loeffler told the Progress he spent months talking to council members and Mercado bashers. “We’ve reached out to the biggest detractors for the project to try to sit down and talk about what the options are for the site,” he said, noting Caliber purchased the project from owners who went bankrupt and left the property in disrepair. “We think we can propose a project,” Loeffler said, “that is as good as we can get in the current economic environment – to be a successful project to be a vast improvement to what is already there.” In the coming months, he will again ask Council for a rezoning that will allow “office, live-work and multi-family.” Neighbors read into that one word: apartments. Loeffler allowed the 255 “units” the latest plan features will be apartments. “We had a condo concept at one point,” Loeffler said. “We just couldn’t make it work.” A good chunk of the neighborhood meeting crowd seemed to think this doesn’t work, either. “I like places like this,” said a woman who declined to give her name to the Progress. “It’s a beautiful complex – it looks so much better than what’s there now. “It’s unfortunate there’s so much negativity.” Several seconded her thoughts, including a 30-year-old (who also declined to give his full name) who said new apartments are attractive “to people my age.” But Emily Austin griped – as others did – that she was lucky to hear about the little-publicized meeting. “I learned about this through an email Solange Whitehead sent to a ‘select’ group of her constituents,” Austin said. “It appears she only included individuals whom she thought would support this project.” Austin said several apartment projects in the area are already underway and demanded Caliber “stick to the zoning” the company assumed when it bought the long-vacant property two years ago. The Caliber property is across 92nd Street from HonorHealth Scottsdale Shea Medical Center. The vacant, dilapidated Caliber building is in an otherwise-thriving center anchored by a Sprouts Farmers Market. Responding to Austin’s allegation, Whitehead told the Progress, “I have routinely sent out developer meeting notice alerts because of the high-level interest in this area. “I would say that most people that received my email have previously opposed the two apartment projects,” Whitehead said. Traffic times three Three words would describe the complaints and fears several neighbors expressed at the Jan. 8 meeting: Traffic, traffic, traffic. Several expressed criticism by groaning and shouting out, at times talking over each other. “You’re being dishonest,” one yelled at Loeffler, before storming out. Perhaps the most pointed critique came from Jeff Cull. “No matter what we say, you’re going to follow your mission statement to build what you do successfully,” Cull said. “There’s little any of us can say that’s going to change the outcome.” That might sound like a familiar complaint to neighbors of other developments around Scottsdale, who found their concerns bulldozed. “We have to look at City Council,” Cull continued. “If we don’t change the council, these things will continue.” When a Caliber executive who did not identify himself interrupted him, the lanky Cull, nearly blew his cool – calling the executive “rude.”